Potential of ultrasonic processing in biomedical applications

Abstract

Ultrasound waves are sound waves with frequencies higher than the human audible frequencies and application of these waves in biomedical science is explored in this article. A novel approach that involved the use of ultrasound was discovered in around 1950 and since then, it is experimented on to obtain various applications like gene/drug delivery, diagnosis, theranostics, tissue engineering, etc. Ultrasound waves are sound waves travelling at frequencies above human audible frequencies and are further classified into three types: high frequency, medium frequency and low frequency, each showing different therapeutic applications. Ultrasound has shown its application in various fields like dentistry, wastewater management, etc. Apart from therapeutic use, ultrasound is also implemented in synthesis, extraction, tissue engineering, gene delivery and many more applications. This article mentions the recent applications of ultrasound as a non-invasive route for the treatment of several diseases also due to its enhanced penetration of cells which helped greatly in the delivery of drugs/genes, in the extraction of various essential biological components from plants, in the synthesis of several compounds, in the field of theranostics – a combination of diagnosis and therapy, in tissue engineering, etc.